NBI summons Wowowee organizers

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Thursday summoned game show host Willie Revillame and ABS-CBN vice president for entertainment Charo Santos-Cancio to appear before bureau investigators on Tuesday (February 28) in relation to its inquiry into the February 4 “Wowowee" stampede. NBI acting director Nelson Mantarin said retired Navy captain Rene Luspo, ABS-CBN head of security, was invited for a hearing on Monday (February 27). Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales has given the NBI three days to complete the investigation into the stampede that occurred at the PhilSports Arena (PSA), which left 70 persons dead and hundreds injured. A special team of state prosecutors has wrapped up its inquiry into the stampede but Gonzales and Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita found the report incomplete because it lacked the identities of persons who could be held criminally liable for the accident. Gonzales said the Department of Justice report virtually echoed the initial findings of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), indicating the lack of coordination between event organizers and the police. The DILG fact-finding body said ABS-CBN failed to coordinate with the Eastern Police District policemen to control the crowd that started to swell a few days before the actual first year anniversary show of “Wowowee."-GMANews.TV